The cognitive sciences began with great enthusiasm for the
prospects of a successful multi-disciplinary attack on the mind. This
enthusiasm was fueled by the faith that computational ideas could put
flesh on abstract notions of mental representation, providing the
means to make good physical sense of questions about the nature of
mental information processing. The challenges of understanding how
minds work have turned out to be much greater than many of the early
enthusiasts predicted — in fact they have turned out to be so
great that many (especially here at IU) have argued that we need new
paradigms to replace the standard computationalist-representationalist
assumptions of traditional cognitive science. This course aims to
provide an understanding of the philosophical issues underlying this
discussion and to apply this understanding to a specific cutting edge
topic. For Spring 2017 that issue will be the question of how to
think about the relationship of minds to brains: can mind be realized
in multiple, genuinely different ways?

By the end of this course you should have broad knowledge of the
history, philosophy, and major concepts and programmatic trends in the
philosophy of cognitive science, along with an appreciation for the
philosophical issues that motivated the emergence of cognitive science
and underlie the controversies within it. By the end of the course you
should have the ability to read works written for professional
academic cognitive scientists and philosophers of cognitive science,
and to summarize them accurately both orally and in writing using
your own words. You should also be able to relate foundational
issues in cognitive science to your own research interests.

Grading Basis

Grades will be based holistically on overall performance in the following six categories:

Reaction piece 10 in form of book review [max. 1000 words]* of Polger & Shapiro book, due April 14.

Paper proposals considered Mar 9-23** [2 pages]

Draft of paper due any time until Apr 20 [approx 10 pages]

Final paper due May 03 [approx 15 pages]

Classroom participation***

* Weekly reaction pieces due before midnight on due dates (see
calendar below). Electronic delivery preferred (all common formats can
be handled), but paper delivery in class on Wednesday also
acceptable. For Reactions 1-9, identify which items you have read from
the reading list for that week, and write a short (250-400 word)
reaction to at least one of them.
This should not be a summary or restatement of the reading.
Rather, write an argumentative response to something you read. State
what you liked or disliked most about the idea(s) and why, with
special attention to the strength of the arguments that were
presented. For Reaction10, identify a journal in philosophy, cognitive
science, or your primary field that does book reviews and write a
short (1000-1200 word) review of Polger & Shapiro's book in the style of that
journal, highlighting the aspects of the book most relevant to
researchers in that area.

** Three approaches to writing a paper for this class:

Write a standard piece of critical philosophy — i.e., describe an argument from an assigned reading for the course, and criticize it by pointing out where it depends on assumptions that one shouldn’t believe, or fails to live up to a standard of logical reasoning.

Write survey of positions concerning one of the foundational issues we have encountered in the course… for example, concerning all the ideas about what concepts are or are not, cover the arguments that have been give pro and con and assess their relative strengths and weaknesses, even if you don’t yourself come down on any particular side.

Describe a way that a foundational issue that we have covered in the course affects theorizing, or could provide ideas for experimental design or model construction, in some area of cognitive science that interests you, especially one that is close to your own research.

*** This is a discussion-oriented class. I reserve the right to
schedule individual presentations to the class if the discussion is
not flowing well in class (it usually does!). Also, if you do not
speak up regularly during class discussions, you may be required to
take an oral exam to be scheduled at the instructor's discretion
during finals week.

Schedule of Readings and Presentations

Articles for the first part of the semester are available to you
via the links below for your personal use under fair use
doctrine. Items preceded with bullets "•" are required readings;
items preceded with daggers "†" are suggested optional
readings. P&S#: indicates chapters from the book by Polger and
Shapiro. This schedule may be altered in response to events in
class.

Statement for Students with DisabilitiesThe
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal anti-discrimination
statute that provides comprehensive civil rights protection for
persons with disabilities. Among other things, this legislation
requires that all students with disabilities be guaranteed a learning
environment that provides for reasonable accommodation of their
disabilities. If you believe you have a disability requiring an
accommodation, please contact IU Disability
Services for Students.

Statement about Academic MisconductUniversity rules concerning academic misconduct will be rigorously
enforced in this class. See IU Code of Ethics, Part II for details. As a student
at IU, you are expected to adhere to the standards and policies
detailed in the Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and
Conduct. When you submit a paper with your name on it in this course,
you are signifying that the work contained therein is all yours,
unless otherwise cited or referenced. Any ideas or materials taken
from another source for either written or oral use must be fully
acknowledged. If you are unsure about the expectations for completing
an assignment or taking a test or exam, be sure to seek clarification
beforehand. All suspected violations of the Code will be handled
according to University policies. Sanctions for academic misconduct
may include a failing grade on the assignment, reduction in your final
grade, a failing grade in the course, among other possibilities, and
must include a report to the Dean of Students.